Motorcycle ride through Africa to benefit HIV, AIDS nonprofits

Bethesda resident and National Institutes of Health employee Andrew Forsyth is planning to participate in a 1,500-mile motorcycle ride around the southern part of Africa this October to raise funds for organizations dealing with HIV and AIDS in the region.

When Bethesda resident Andrew Forsyth was a student at the University of California, San Francisco, and needed stress relief, his Honda motor scooter with its 150cc engine was waiting for him.

"I would jump on it and ride out to the ocean," Forsyth said.

On his next motorized adventure, he may not find a lot of stress relief. But Forsyth, who works at the National Institute of Mental Health at the National Institutes of Health, can't wait for the 1,500-mile off-road motorbike ride to start.

The ride, Enduro Africa 2009, will start on Oct. 2 this year and will take about 100 riders all around the southern part of the continent, beginning in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. The ride is expected to take about eight days and will test the riders' endurance as they traverse the beautiful natural terrain and countryside of the area, from mud-jammed streams to mountain passes and open plains.

The donations raised and contributed by the riders will go to four separate nonprofits that deal with HIV and AIDS in southern Africa. After the ride, the bikes used by the participants will also be donated to local health care workers.

But for Forsyth, 43, the trip will be about much more than mud-coated helmets and spectacular views.

Forsyth's work at NIH focuses on behavioral and psychological aspects of HIV and AIDS prevention and treatment. He examines problems such as how to help impoverished victims overcome practical obstacles to AIDS treatment regimens.

Because of the trip, he will have the chance to observe firsthand the effects of HIV and AIDS programs at clinics and schools run by groups such as UNICEF and the Nelson Mandela Children's Fund in local villages.

According to estimates from the World Health Organization, approximately 5.7 million people in South Africa aged 15 to 49 — about 18 percent of the population — had HIV as of 2007. About 350,000 people died of AIDS in the country that year, while 280,000 young people up to age 14 had HIV.

"Young girls in their early teens are among the most at risk in sub-Saharan Africa," said Forsyth, who has been to South Africa three times previously to attend conferences on HIV and AIDS prevention and treatment.

As of early this week, Forsyth had raised about $3,450, according to a Web log he has kept about his preparations for the trip. The minimum donation to participate in the ride is about $7,500. He said not only has the fundraising response been impressive so far, it has also given him the chance to speak with several people about issues in the global HIV and AIDS treatment community.

"I can't believe the turnout," he said.

He's recently made contact with one of the four other American riders, Ganesh Krishnan, who works in the oil and gas industry in Houston, and like Forsyth has only limited experience in off-road biking.

"The big thing is not knowing the terrain so much," Krishnan said.

Krishnan said he became interested in the event when he read about British royalty, specifically Prince Harry and Prince William, taking part in Enduro Africa last year. So far, he has raised about $2,400 and has begun calling nonprofit organizations to ask for help.

"The bottom line is, you're out there making an impact and out there having a good time as well," Krishnan said.

Forsyth is trying to prepare for the grueling trip by taking off-road courses in Virginia, and jokes that he'll end up mimicking previous bikers who are shown in a 2006 video tumbling off their bikes into a rocky stream. He has a lot of mountain biking experience he thinks will help, even though he isn't sure what the exact route will be yet for the Enduro Africa race.

"I know it's risky," he said. "…I just cannot get away from the thrill of riding a motorcycle."